In the latest move in its aggressive expansion campaign over the past two years, London-based Norton Rose is to merge with a several-hundred-lawyer Canadian firm that focuses its practice on energy and natural resources.

As of Jan 1, 2012, when Norton Rose and Macleod Dixon plan to tie the knot, the megafirm will have 2,900 attorneys on its roster and annual revenue of about $1.25 billion, reports Reuters.

But that won’t be the final piece in the megafirm puzzle. A merger with an as yet unidentified U.S. law firm is also expected within the next five years, chief executive Peter Martyr tells the news agency.

“Ultimately, we have to be there, for sure. It’s an imperative but it’s not time-critical,” Martyr says. “There will be a time for us to do it with a firm or firms that suit, or see the world the way we see it.”